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Manage Categories

A category groups related expenses together for reporting and analysis. Think of categories as "expense types" that reflect how you organise your accounting or tax records.

Common category examples:

  • Office Supplies
  • Travel & Accommodation
  • Marketing & Advertising
  • Professional Services
  • Utilities
  • Software Subscriptions
  • Equipment & Hardware

How categories work in BillKit:

  • Categories belong to a specific business
  • Every expense must have a category assigned
  • Categories help you understand spending patterns
  • AI suggests categories when processing invoices
  • You can filter and group expenses by category
  • Categories can be exported for accounting software

Creating a Category

Before you start processing invoices, you should create a few categories that match your business structure.

To create a category:

  1. Ensure a business is selected (check the business name in the sidebar)
  2. Click "Categories" in the sidebar (under References section)
  3. Click the "+" button in the toolbar at the top right
  4. A form sheet slides down with one required field:
    • Name - The category name (e.g. "Office Supplies", "Travel")
  5. Type the category name
  6. Click "Add Category"

The category is created and immediately available for expenses.

Form validation:

  • Category names must be unique within a business (case-insensitive)
  • Maximum length: 255 characters
  • Leading and trailing spaces are automatically trimmed
  • You cannot create duplicate names like "Travel" and "TRAVEL" - BillKit treats these as the same

Viewing Categories

The Categories screen shows a table of all categories for the currently selected business.

Table columns:

  • Name - Category name with a coloured indicator (teal circle = default category)
  • Expenses - Total number of expenses using this category
  • Last Expense - Invoice number of the most recent expense
  • Last Vendor - Vendor name from the most recent expense
  • Last Used - Date of the most recent expense in this category
  • Updated - When the category was last modified

Sorting:

Click any column header to sort by that column. Click again to reverse the sort order.

Pagination:

The table shows 100 categories at a time. If you have more, a "Load More" button appears at the bottom.

Editing a Category

You can rename a category at any time.

To edit a category:

  1. Click "Categories" in the sidebar
  2. Right-click the category you want to edit
  3. Choose "Edit Category" from the context menu
  4. The edit form modal slides down showing the current name
  5. Change the name
  6. Click "Save Changes"

The category is updated. All expenses using this category automatically show the new name - you don't need to update them individually.

Validation:

The same rules apply as when creating - names must be unique (case-insensitive) within the business.

Setting the Default

Each business has a default category. This default is used when:

  • Creating a new manual expense (pre-selected in the form)
  • AI processing fails to suggest a category

To set a category as default:

  1. Click "Categories" in the sidebar
  2. Right-click the category you want to make default
  3. Choose "Set as Default" from the context menu

The category becomes the default. Only one category can be default at a time. Setting a new default automatically removes it from the previous one.

Visual indicator:

The default category shows a circle (using the app Accent colour) in the Name column. Non-default categories show a grey circle.

Tip: Choose a default category that represents your most common expense type. For personal tracking, "Uncategorized" might be fine. For businesses, consider "General Expenses" or your most frequent category.

Deleting a Category

Deleting a category requires careful consideration because expenses must always have a category assigned.

Rules for deletion:

  • You cannot delete the default category - First set a different category as default, then delete
  • If the category has expenses, you must reassign those expenses to another category
  • Categories with no expenses can be deleted immediately

To delete a category with no expenses

  1. Click "Categories" in the sidebar
  2. Right-click the category you want to delete
  3. Choose "Delete Category" from the context menu
  4. A confirmation dialog appears
  5. Review the category name carefully
  6. Click "Delete"

The category is permanently deleted.

To delete a category with expenses

  1. Click "Categories" in the sidebar
  2. Right-click the category you want to delete
  3. Choose "Delete Category" from the context menu
  4. A dialog appears showing how many expenses will be affected (e.g. "12 expenses")
  5. A dropdown appears listing all other categories in this business
  6. Select the category to reassign expenses to
  7. Click "Reassign & Delete"

BillKit:

  • Moves all expenses from the deleted category to the selected category
  • Updates the "updated" timestamp on all affected expenses
  • Permanently deletes the category
  • Clears any persisted filters that referenced this category

Warning: Deletion is permanent and cannot be undone. If you're unsure, consider renaming the category instead (e.g. "Archive: Old Category Name").

Bulk deleting (selected categories)

  1. Click "Categories" in the sidebar
  2. Select the rows for each category to delete (click and drag or hold Shift and select)
  3. A bulk action toolbar appears at the top
  4. Click the "Delete selected" button
  5. Confirm your decision
  6. The selected categories are deleted and table is reloaded.

Searching and Filtering

Click the search icon (magnifying glass) in the top right toolbar to reveal a search field. Type a category name to filter the list. Search is case-insensitive and matches partial names.

Filters:

Click the filter icon (funnel with three lines) in the top right toolbar. A filter panel slides in from the right with these options:

  • Has Expenses - Show only categories with at least one expense, or only those with zero expenses
  • Date Range - Filter by creation date or last updated date
  • Last Vendor - Show only categories where the most recent expense came from a specific vendor

Set your criteria and the table updates automatically. Click outside the panel or press the X to dismiss it.

Remembering filters:

BillKit saves your filter settings when you leave the Categories screen. When you return, your filters are restored exactly as you left them.

Exporting Categories

You can export your category list to CSV format for use in spreadsheets or accounting software.

Bulk export (selected categories):

  1. Click "Categories" in the sidebar
  2. Select the rows for each category to export (click and drag or hold Shift and select)
  3. A bulk action toolbar appears at the top
  4. Click the "Export selected" button
  5. Choose a save location
  6. The CSV file is created

What's exported:

  • Category name
  • Expense count
  • Last expense date
  • Created date
  • Updated date

You can also export all categories for a business from the Export Data screen.

Managing Businesses
Manage Vendors
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